[Mcgilles]

I have seen the SES light on before, nothing too scary, but now its flashing. it goes back and forth between states, sometimes its on constantly, sometimes its flashing. has anyone had this happen before? what does that mean? nI know solid on means that its an emissions related code, but I can't remember what it means if its flashing, and I Can't find it in my owners manual right now. kinda scary, any info would be appreciated.

 

[diesel600]

Flashing generally indicates a misfire condition. Be careful driving it, you don't want to damage your catalytic converters.

 

[Twilight]

That's correct, it's a misfire. Is it flashing in different patterns or is there a consistant pattern? If there is, a misfire is happening and you should probably try and find out what it is.

 

[jj57]

You have a misfire. It will usually flash when driving and be on steady when you start the car up correct? Get it looked at ASAP. Your cat can be damaged.

Check all Plugs, Coil(s) and Wires. Most likely plugs and wires.

 

[Mcgilles]

hmm I was afraid of something like that. its a gen III SHO so there are no plug wires. if its really misfiring, shouldn't I be able to feel that though? engine feels like its running perfectly smoothly, and there is no shudder or loss of power, is that normal for a misfire condition? what can cause this? I guess I'll try to dig into it as soon as I can and see what's up. anything I can do to check it out other than just make sure everything is plugged in properly? to be honest I almost think its just the computer getting confused, since I put the chip in there, it happens on occation, but it always gets cleared out just fine as soon as I reset the computer by disconnecting power. as for the pattern, its usually on solid when I start the car, while driving, it changes state periodically from steady on, so constant rate flashing. what can cause this problem? and are there any other secondary conditions I can confirm that that is the case? any chance that if I pull the code it will tell me which cylinder is misfiring? man I hope its not a bad coil, those are expensive from what I hear!
thanks for all your help!

 

[jj57]

Yep, I was right.

You need to get it scanned ASAP!!! You will burn out the cat if you don't.

First off when is the last time that you changed the plugs?

Next, find out the problem Cyl and change the plug, then check the boot on the coil pack, after that check the coil pack with a multi-meter to make sure it's in spec.

 

[Mcgilles]

I changed the plugs not long ago. less than 10k ago. the plugs are supposed to be good for 100k, but I hear its better to change them around 50k just to be on teh safe side. I'm thinking about buying one of those little scanners that advanc auto sells, its just over 100$ I think, but I so often feel like I need one but before I do that I'll try to pull the codes with the climate control I can't imagine a plug could be bad, since they are pretty new, but maybe I got a defective one, or maybe I got some moisture in there or someting like that. I'll do what I can to get the codes and see which cylinder it is and check stuff out...on another node looking at the front of the car, I hvae cylinders:
X X X X
X X X X
can someone label them for me which is which (the numbers) haha I'll need to be able to identify it.
thanks

 

[Mcgilles]

well, some new information. I turned off my Apten chip just to take that possibilty out of the loop, and the SES went away, no problems at all on the way home. looks like it was just a computer thing huh? I wonder why it didn't reset when I disconnected the computer? I guess I just didn't leave it disconnected long enough, because I was in a hurry, maybe there is an internal capacitor or something to prevent data loss over short interruptions of power? well, I'll try disconnecting the battery for a longer period of time to make sure I clear it, and turn teh chip back on and see what happens.

 

[projectSHO89]

Quit guessing as to the cause of the SES!

Take your car to a parts store that offers free scanning (AutoZone and Advance Auto Parts do it ihere) or purchase your own OBD-II scanner for arounf $125-150.

Write down all the codes EXACTLY, then post them here for diagnostic assistance.

You can guess all you want, but it will be as effective as pi$$ing into the wind.

Steve

 

[biteableniles]

QUOTE

Take your car to a parts store that offers free scanning (AutoZone and Advance Auto Parts do it ihere) or purchase your own OBD-II scanner for arounf $125-150.[/b]

Highly recommended. I've never made a better investment

But, yeah, get it checked. It could really just be a computer thing totally unrelated to misfire--or it could be a misfire. You won't know till you check

 

[Mcgilles]

oh, I guess I didn't reply with the aftermath. yeah, that was going to happen yesterday in fact, I wanted to buy one of those things because I always have need for it, but the only one at the local store was ripped off, package there, no scanner inside. but anyway, problem solved, it was a confused computer. turning the chip off cleared the DTC code, turned the chip back on, and it remained off. car has been running well ever since. thanks for everyone's advice!
as soon as I have some extra money, I'm gonna get one of those OBD2 scanners, such a useful tool